Lapwing Review

Lapwing is the debut feature film for director Philip Stevens and writer Laura Turner. They delivered one of the bleakest films of 2021.

The year is 1555. Queen Mary has expelled all Gypsies from England. Any Gypsies found in England and anyone who supports them will be executed. David (Emmett J Scanlan), the leader of a small community of salt farmers has arranged for a ship to collect a group of Gypsies within a week. However, Patience (Hannah Douglas), a mute woman who is abused and humiliated by David, falls for one of the Gypsies.

Lapwing is an indie film that garnered a bit of attention. It was picked up by Bulldog, one of the leading indie film distributors in the UK, its star, Hannah Douglas, has been longlisted for Breakthrough Performance at the BIFAs, and it premiered at the Leeds International Film Festival. The people behind the film have been active on social media promoting their production. I have been following their Instagram page.

Lapwing ticks a few boxes for me because it was a historical drama, an indie film, and a bleak story. I was keen to see it. It was a tough yet rewarding watch.

Lapwing has been earning a lot of praise from outlets like HeyUGuys and Britflicks. A lot of this was deserved. Its best feature was its acting. Douglas is an emerging actress who has appeared mostly in short films. Her performance was an incredible showcase of her talents and she does deserve the recognition from the BIFAs.

Douglas had a challenging role. Her character had such a terrible stutter that she couldn’t say a word, not even when she’s alone. The most she could do was sing to herself. Douglas had to act through her body language and eyes, and she does brilliantly to convey her romance with Rumi (Sebastian De Souza) and the fear and intimidation she suffered from David. Patience was a character who suffered constantly during the film, and you can’t help but feel for her. Fortunately, Douglas looked a lot happier in the behind-the-scenes photos.

Scanlan was probably the most recognisable actor in the film. He had roles in Hollyoaks, Peaky Blinders, and The Fall. He played a truly vile character who took pleasure in torturing and humiliating Patience throughout the film. His first action towards Patience was tormenting her for her speech impediment. David had a brutish quality like a villain from a Brontë sisters’ novel. Scanlan proved how good a performer he is because he was so loathsome.

The premise of Lapwing made it seem like it was going to be a story about prejudice and forbidden love. There were elements of that in the film. The Gypsies were kept away from David’s community and when Patience’s affair with Rumi was discovered David beat her up in the middle of the camp. Some members of the community tried to justify Patience’s actions by saying she was bewitched, which shows the levels of racism and sexism that were present in this period.

The story does have modern parallels. The story of David exploiting the Gypsies does bear similarities to the current situation in the English Channel where criminals are profiting on the desperate trying to get into the UK. The #MeToo movement was another influence on Lapwing. Patience suffered at the hands of men. David represented toxic masculinity with his dominating personality, whilst the character of Jacob (Lewis Gemmill) represented a different type of toxic masculinity because he felt his kindness entitled him to things. Patience was literally voiceless because she couldn’t speak about the abuse she suffered.

The filmmakers were clearly working on a limited budget, but they made it work. The film was shot on a plain by the sea and in the woods, so the filmmakers showed David’s community as being on the fringes of society. They live in tents, not even huts and they had to live off the land. A key scene was when David made Patience skin a rabbit. The filmmakers used the setting for some great location shooting and showing the windy plains of Lincolnshire.

Director Philip Stevens made Lapwing a slow-burning film. His approach was similar to films like Andrea Arnold’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights and Ben Whatley’s A Field of England because they were rural set historical England and used a minimum of dialogue. Stevens will probably be happy with these comparisons.

Lapwing won’t be for everyone because of its ponderous approach and the tough subject. It serves as a great debut for its writer and director because of the themes and craftsmanship and Hannah Douglas showed she is a talent to watch out for.